{
  "url": "https://openlegislation.uk/police-and-criminal-evidence-act-1984-application-to-enforcement-officers-regulations-2026/note",
  "json_url": "https://openlegislation.uk/police-and-criminal-evidence-act-1984-application-to-enforcement-officers-regulations-2026/note.json",
  "legislation": "uksi/2026/303",
  "legislation_title": "The Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984 (Application to Enforcement Officers) Regulations 2026",
  "legislation_url": "https://openlegislation.uk/police-and-criminal-evidence-act-1984-application-to-enforcement-officers-regulations-2026",
  "path": "note",
  "kind": "note",
  "number": null,
  "heading": "Explanatory note",
  "text": "(This note is not part of the Regulations)\nThese Regulations apply certain provisions of the Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984 (c. 60) (“PACE”) to investigations undertaken by enforcement officers into labour market offences. Enforcement officers are officers who are appointed by the Secretary of State under section 90 of the Employment Rights Act 2025 (c. 36). “Labour market offence” has the same meaning as in Part 5 of the Employment Rights Act 2025.\nRegulation 3 applies the provisions of PACE set out in regulation 4 to enforcement officers, subject to the modifications specified in the Schedule. Paragraphs 2 to 10 of the Schedule make general modifications to the provisions of PACE so that they operate effectively in respect of enforcement officers, whereas paragraphs 11 to 23 make specific modifications to the provisions of PACE for the same purpose.\nRegulation 4(a) to (c) applies, and paragraphs 11 to 13 of the Schedule modify, sections 1 to 3 of PACE so that when an enforcement officer searches premises in reliance on a search warrant, an enforcement officer may search persons found on the premises only if the enforcement officer has reasonable grounds for suspecting that the person may have concealed on him material which might be evidence in relation to a labour market offence. Safeguards on this power include requirements to inform the person of the grounds for the search and to make and keep records.\nRegulation 4(d) to (g) applies sections 8(1) to (5), 9(1), 15 and 16 of, and Schedule 1 to, PACE, which enable applications to a court for search warrants and production orders and the execution of warrants. Paragraph 14 of the Schedule modifies section 16 of PACE.\nRegulation 4(h) and (i) applies sections 17(1)(a)(i), (1)(b), (2) and (4) and 18 of PACE, enabling enforcement officers to enter and search property for the purpose of executing an arrest warrant or arresting a person for an indictable offence and to enter and search the property of an arrested person for evidence. Paragraphs 15 and 16 of the Schedule modify those sections.\nRegulation 4(j) to (m) applies sections 19 to 21 and 22(1), (2)(a), (3), (4) and (7) of PACE, enabling the seizure and retention of material by enforcement officers. Paragraph 17 of the Schedule modifies section 21 of PACE, including by providing that access and copying of material may be refused if it would prejudice the investigation of any offence, not only a labour market offence.\nParagraph 18 of the Schedule modifies section 22 of PACE. The modifications provide that material seized or taken away by an enforcement officer, or seized or taken away by another person such as a police officer and passed to an enforcement officer, may be retained by an enforcement officer so long as is necessary in all the circumstances. Items that an enforcement officer has seized from a person on arrest on the grounds that, for example, it may be used to cause physical injury to another person must be passed to the police once the arrested person is handed over to a constable.\nRegulation 4(n) to (r) applies sections 24(1)(b) and (d), (2) to (4), (5)(a), (b), (c)(i) to (iii), (d), (e) and (f), 28, 29, 30(1)(a), (1A), (1B), (7) to (11) and 32(1) to (9) of PACE, in relation to arrest of suspects by enforcement officers. Paragraphs 19 and 20 of the Schedule modify sections 29 and 30 of PACE. In particular, paragraph 20 modifies section 30 so that an enforcement officer who arrests a person elsewhere than at a police station is under a duty to deliver the person into the custody of a constable as soon as practicable after the arrest. Once a constable has taken a person into custody, the constable will then be under a duty to take the person to a police station as soon as practicable.\nRegulation 4(s) and (t) applies sections 43 and 44 of PACE, to enable enforcement officers to make an application for the further detention of a person by the police in relation to a labour market offence. Paragraph 21 of the Schedule modifies section 43 of PACE. The modifications provide that a court must consider whether it would have been reasonable for either the police or an enforcement officer to make the application earlier and that a court must consider what inquiries relating to the offence have been made either by the police or by an enforcement officer.\nRegulation 4(u) applies, and paragraph 22 of the Schedule modifies, section 77(3) of PACE, so that when a jury is considering the confession of a mentally handicapped person, an enforcement officer is not considered to be an “independent person” who is present in relation to that confession.\nRegulation 4(v) applies section 117 of PACE, enabling enforcement officers to use reasonable force, if necessary, in the exercise of powers conferred by PACE. Paragraph 23 of the Schedule modifies section 117 of PACE to reflect that none of the powers conferred on enforcement officers are exercisable only with the consent of a person other than another enforcement officer.\nRegulation 4(w) applies the relevant interpretation provisions in PACE to those PACE provisions applied by these regulations.\nRegulation 5 makes transitional provision for the period until relevant provisions of the Policing and Crime Act 2017 (c. 3) come into force.\nAn impact assessment has not been produced for this instrument as no impact on the private or voluntary sectors is foreseen.",
  "extent": null,
  "status": null,
  "version": "current",
  "annotations": [],
  "outstanding_effects": [],
  "provenance": {
    "source": "legislation.gov.uk",
    "source_url": "https://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/2026/303/note",
    "retrieved_at": "2026-10-28T21:04:02.871533+00:00"
  },
  "licence": "Open Government Licence v3.0",
  "licence_url": "https://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence/version/3/",
  "attribution": "Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Source: legislation.gov.uk, The National Archives."
}